


Fate or Something Softer

by ZellaSunshine



Category: Last of the Mohicans (1992)
Genre: Stream of Consciousness, unedited
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-05
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:07:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24548119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZellaSunshine/pseuds/ZellaSunshine
Summary: Love, as new and fragile as a sparrow nestling.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 7





	Fate or Something Softer

And maybe nearly dying on that rocky ledge was the greatest thing to happen to you. Not in the literal sense; you would very much like to be alive, thank you. 

But in selfish terms.... something had passed between you and Uncas, something when he pulled you from the ledge and held you for perhaps just a second too long. 

Or perhaps it wasn’t long at all. Staring into his eyes felt an eternity. You wondered vaguely if he felt it as well. It was hard to tell. His face gave nothing away as he released you from his gentle hold. 

It was entirely your fault you slipped. You had been distracted, more focused on the scenery than your footing. All it had taken was one misplaced step. 

Your ankle had twisted painfully, and in an attempt to steady yourself you had almost stepped right off a ledge. 

Uncas appeared as if out of nowhere. Suddenly, his arm was securely around your waist, pulling you back away from the edge. 

Your heart beat so erratically you thought you might die of fright. But when you turn to thank Uncas, him still holding you loosely, you note, as if he worries you might slip away again. When you meet his eyes you find you’ve lost all of your words. 

You open your mouth and shut again, absolutely unsure of what you had meant to say. 

“Are you alright, Miss?” he asks, his eyes still on you. 

It feels as though you’re being laid bare, as if he must know every frantic thought fluttering through your head as you stand frozen. 

“Yes, thanks to you.” your response is so delayed that you almost forgot he had asked a question. 

And when he finally drops his hand from you, you feel that loss as a coldness. 

An English lady shouldn’t be having such untoward thoughts. The two of you together in any sense of the word was impossible. You came from two different worlds, and each of you with different expectations from your family. 

Yet here in the forest, things don’t seem very complicated at all. 

You spend far too long thinking about Uncas’s hands, that felt as if they had left scorch marks on your waist and arms, where he had grabbed you to keep you from tumbling down a sheer face. You work hard to keep a blush from rising on your cheeks. 

There were so many things you wanted to ask him. Some simple and some you knew you would never be brave enough to ask aloud. About the golden bracelets encircling his wrists, or how he had learned to speak English as perfectly as anyone in the colonies. 

Or why when you tried to steal glances at him from under your lashes, you found him already looking at you. 

It had to mean something. Or at least, in your heart of hearts you hoped it meant something. Maybe you would grow brave enough to voice all of these thoughts aloud... but for now you convince yourself you should say nothing. 

Deeper within you still though, is a hidden thought that burns as a small candle, unable to be snuffed out entirely from your thoughts. 

You think of how if Uncas approaches you, if he tells you all the things you feel he feels for you too... you would leave your old life behind in a heartbeat. 

Because your short time in the new world has made you feel more invigorated and full of life than all of the stuffy parties and gaudy dresses of your English life. 

Because you thought you would never have a choice in marriage, only to wed someone who would further lift your family in society. 

You resigned yourself to becoming the apathetic wife. Beautiful and empty, all true feelings tucked up safely inside. 

But here half way across the world from your mother, from your grand manor and tittering maids, you find yourself with more choices than you’ve ever had before. 

To choose to pursue a love, to pursue freedom never given to you... 

And the next time you catch Uncas watching, you can’t help but smile back. Your heart feels so light looking at him.


End file.
